


Wonder Blind

by LingeringLilies



Category: Amar a Muerte (TV)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Missing Scene, Valentina is the most emotional
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-03-04
Packaged: 2019-11-09 05:03:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17995373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LingeringLilies/pseuds/LingeringLilies
Summary: The missing scene where the girls reunite after Valentina goes on TV to declare her love.





	Wonder Blind

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like something gets lost in their dialogue when not written in Spanish, but because I'm not a native speaker and because it gets complicated putting translations in text in a way that doesn't disrupt the flow, I've only included English. Any thoughts or suggestions from native speakers very much appreciated!

She leaves the glare of the soundstage lights, heart pounding so hard she doesn’t hear anything else. The set swirls around her as she heads back to the green room, barely aware of her surroundings as she collects her bag. She thought she had been nervous before; claiming Juliana to the world hadn’t been something she thought she’d ever do. But she had done it, and was hoping her heart would quiet after.

But if anything, it beats louder now.

She climbs into the back of the SUV in a daze.

“Where to, Miss Valentina?” Alirio asks.

She mumbles the address without thinking. There is nowhere else to go but to Juliana.

The streets blur around her. She fumbles with her phone, palms still clammy. She tries to wipe them on the leather but they just squeak.

Too soon -- and yet not soon enough -- she’s at Juliana’s apartment. Somehow she never thought through this part. She rehearsed what she was going to say for the cameras a hundred times, making sure each pause, each inflection, each word was perfect. And it happened exactly as she’d wanted it to.

But not even a thousand rehearsals could make this next part perfect enough.

She’s half floating, half churning ice when the driver gets out and opens her door for her. She barely trusts her legs to carry her up the stairs.

“Are you okay, Miss Valentina?” Alirio asks.

She mumbles something noncommittal in response, looking up at the window of Juliana’s kitchen. She sees Lupe at the sink, gazing out, and for a second their eyes lock before Lupe’s face brightens and she turns, calling over her shoulder.

Valentina’s insides speed up and she heads up the stairs.

Before she reaches the landing, the door opens and Juliana appears, eyes wide and hands flexed at her sides, energy coursing through her.

“What were you _thinking_?” she shouts.

For a moment Valentina freezes, foot halfway up the last stair.

But then she sees Juliana is smiling at her like she’s the sun, and the ice inside her thaws. Juliana bounds toward her, wrapping her so tight that Valentina almost coughs. Juliana’s squeeze gentles and Valentina’s heart starts to settle, though it still beats fast. She’s warmer now, and as Juliana pulls back, hands on her shoulders to examine her, Valentina realizes: she’s not the sun. Juliana is.

“Are you okay?” Juliana asks.

Valentina manages a shaky, disbelieving smile before tilting forward to reclaim their embrace. She buries her face in Juliana’s hair, wanting to fold herself into the curve of her neck. She takes the first breaths she can remember taking since she left the television studio, heaving in lungfuls of Juliana, nuzzling against her soft skin. She stays there for a moment, relief rushing through her like water. She feels Juliana soften for a moment, then tense when she doesn’t reply.

“Are you okay?” Juliana repeats, softer.

Valentina takes another breath, then gives a little nod. “Now I am.”

Juliana softens even more at that, running her hands over Valentina’s back for a moment until Valentina falters, her balance uneven on the stairs.

“Come inside,” Juliana murmurs. “You should sit.”

Juliana takes her by the hand, making sure she doesn’t trip on the last stair, and leads her inside, looking more worried than happy.

“Sorry,” Valentina mumbles.

Juliana gives her a confused, incredulous look and puckers her lips in an unvoiced question.

Valentina is about to attempt more coherent speech when Lupe appears, dish towel over her shoulder.

“Valentina!” she says, warm and incredulous. She hugs Valentina. “What a brave girl.” She gestures for Valentina to sit on the sofa, patting the cushions with delight.

Valentina lowers herself onto the sofa, feeling as though she might shatter if she sits down too fast. Juliana is watching her, still concerned as Lupe sidles up to Valentina, chattering away about the tv show and how they’d been watching and how they’d both been so surprised and proud.

“Mama,” Juliana interrupts. “Could you get Val a glass of water?”

Lupe springs up, eager. “Of course,” she says, disappearing in a flurry.

Juliana takes her place beside Valentina, hand sliding into Val’s like a magnet, giving a gentle squeeze.

“I’m proud of you,” Juliana says softly.

Valentina feels her daze start to fade, and she blinks a few times, seeing Juliana clearer. Her eyes are sparkling but she has questions.

“No, I’m proud of _you_ ,” Valentina says. “I needed everyone to know.”

Juliana bites her lip, glancing away. “Really?”

Valentina sees the part of her that doesn’t dare hope. A part of Juliana still thinks maybe she pressured Valentina into it, or that maybe Valentina was drawing attention away from something else for the sake of her family, or maybe it wasn’t even Valentina at all.

But Juliana would never say all that. She’d never accuse Valentina of being disingenuine, because she knows it would crush Valentina.

Valentina sits up straighter, lifting their handclasp with a squeeze. “Really.”

Juliana looks back at her, smile creeping in.

Valentina starts talking, and finds she doesn’t need to rehearse what she has to say.

“You were right,” she says. “If we can’t be together, then love really is shit. And I couldn’t stand the thought of you believing that. Because I don’t think it is. I think it’s the most important thing in the world.”

Juliana’s smile is so wide her eyes start to crinkle, like her face can’t contain how happy she is.

Lupe returns with a glass of water in each hand and sets them on the table. Valentina tears her gaze away from Juliana to look up at Lupe. “Thank you,” she says.

She hopes Lupe knows she’s not thanking her for the glass of water. She’s thanking her for raising the woman of her dreams.

Lupe beams down at her, and Valentina thinks maybe she does know.

“I forgot I have some errands to run,” Lupe whispers with a wink. “I’ll be back later.”

She tiptoes around as she picks up her keys and purse, as though mere footsteps could disturb the joy spreading throughout the house, spilling down the stairs, flowing through the street.

Valentina turns back to Juliana, who is as radiant as she’s ever been. She doesn’t speak, just beams at Valentina. Valentina beams back, and time moves rapidly and not at all. She studies the deep brown of Juliana’s irises, the curve of each eyelash, the tiny creases of her eyelids.

It’s only after a long moment has passed that her eyes drift down to Juliana’s lips, and she realizes it’s been ages since she kissed them, and suddenly all the glasses of water in the world won’t sate this thirst.

She leans forward, touching Juliana’s forehead with her own, desperate and anxious and wondering how much longer she can live without kissing her.

There’s just one question she needs to ask first, to know if it’s okay to kiss her. Because if the answer is no, she’d rather die of thirst than have a taste of what she’ll never have again.

“Are we back together?” she asks, her voice pleading for the right answer.

Juliana makes a little humming noise in the back of her throat as she nods desperately, and Valentina realizes she’s breathless too.

She presses forward, relief sweeping through her as she finds Juliana’s lips, feeling the soft, warm press of her mouth as her mind blanks of everything but this, of everything but the warmth between them and the ache in her chest for more. She threads her fingers through Juliana’s hair, pressing harder into her, as though her lips could transmit everything she cannot find words for. And there is so much to express, so much love she wants to pour into Juliana, she’ll have to kiss her for hours without stopping.

Juliana’s arms slide around her, and soon she’s halfway on Valentina’s lap, kissing her as though she’s been waiting for months.

Valentina thinks of all those months that Juliana waited, with blind faith and hope that someday Valentina would come back. Valentina is suddenly crushed with guilt, in awe of Juliana’s patience and strength.

She has a long way to go to apologize.

Her mouth drifts down Juliana’s jaw, as though kissing only her mouth were ungrateful, as though she needed to kiss every inch of her skin to unlock forgiveness. She kisses the lobe of her ear, kisses down her neck to the spot that makes Juliana shiver and gasp. She buries herself there, thinking of how selfish she’s been to deprive Juliana of love.

She feels the surge of guilt grow stronger, until it’s pushing up her throat and making her ears ring and her eyes sting with tears. She kisses more fervently, hoping it will die down, but it only grows stronger, until she starts to shake and a sob escapes her mouth.

Juliana pulls back. “What is it?” she asks, confused and startled.

Valentina tries to bury her face back in Juliana, but Juliana shifts off her lap to see her more clearly.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m so sorry,” Valentina sobs. “I’m so sorry I made you wait. That was so selfish and shitty of me, you deserve so much better. And I don’t expect you to just forgive me because I went and said a bunch of things on television… I just wanted to start making things right, and I didn’t quite know how… maybe it was over the top? I’m sorry, I’m just horrible at--”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Juliana interrupts. “Sh, shh… don’t be like that.”

“I’m sorry,” Valentina mumbles again.

Juliana rubs her thigh and clucks her tongue, and Valentina stares at her knees.

“Look at me,” Juliana says after multiple squeezes of her hand fail to draw Valentina’s attention.

Valentina looks up, sheepish and afraid of what Juliana will say.

“Things take the time they take. And I think after everything we’ve been through, we can afford each other a little time, no?”

She tilts her head and it’s so adorable, Valentina wants to laugh. Instead she takes a deep breath and lets it out, nodding shakily. She reaches forward and picks up her glass, drinking it all in a few gulps, feeling herself calm as the water slips down her throat.

Juliana takes her lead, reaching for her own glass, taking her time as she sips before setting it back down.

Juliana has always followed her lead, knowing Valentina might spook otherwise. Valentina hopes someday she’ll be courageous enough to follow Juliana’s.

“Come here,” Juliana says, settling back into the couch and holding out her arm to fold Valentina into her.

Valentina melts into her, wiggling until she finds the most comfortable position, and feels her body begin to unspool from what must be years of tension. Everything starts to fall away, and she feels suddenly drowsy. She closes her eyes and wraps her arm around Juliana’s waist.

“Tired?” Juliana asks.

Valentina nods, and Juliana reaches for a blanket, draping it over them.

“Sleep,” she says.

Valentina protests, thinking they haven’t talked like they used to in ages. “But I want to be with you,” she mumbles.

“You are,” Juliana says, kissing the top of her head. “For good.”

**Author's Note:**

> I have a few ideas for continuation, but I'd love to hear yours too!


End file.
